


Tacking Into the Wind

by ZMistress



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Angst, Canon Retelling, Canonical Character Death, Canonical Character Resurrection, Enemies to Friends, Gen, Krillin's POV, minor Krillin/18 later on, minor Vegeta/Bulma later on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2020-05-07 08:36:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19205779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZMistress/pseuds/ZMistress
Summary: Krillin hated Vegeta as much as he feared him. For a long time, one of his regrets was not ending this threat to humanity when he had the chance. Until he finally realized he might have gained a strong ally by sparing him. And more than that, maybe even something like a friend.





	1. Chapter 1

Krillin woke with a start. For a moment he simply sat there, panting, trying to remember where he was.

The only sound that penetrated the darkness all around him was a strange noise, like a growling, hissing beast out to get him. Krillin shivered and did his best to feel what ki this creature had.

Then it all came back to him. "Oh," he breathed and laid back down in his hospital bed.

Right.

It was the day the Saiyans had come to Earth. Or rather the night after that day.

He could sense Goku and Gohan in another room nearby, even though their ki was but faint in their sleep. And in the bed next to him, Yajirobe was snoring, producing sounds that didn't seem all that human.

Krillin suppressed a sigh. Of course, this night had to be rough. After everything that happened today, it was no surprise that he was plagued with nightmares.

And yet what he had dreamed about wasn't what he had expected.

He had not relived the moment Yamcha died a gruesome death. The way his insides were torn by a shock wave, but how he looked merely asleep outwardly. Or how guilty Krillin had felt at that moment because Yamcha had died in his stead. Even worse, how guilty he felt because he had been so relieved this wasn't him, that he had the chance to live another day, find love and happiness.

He hadn't dreamed about Chiaotzu tearing himself to shreds in a desperate attempt to save his friends either. Nor of Tien using his very life force until nothing was left.

Krillin swallowed and took a deep breath until he felt a bit better.

No, in his dreams he had seen the monster.

Krillin had faced terrifying opponents before. Had lost his life against a non-human creature sent to wipe out all martial artists. But it was still nothing like what had happened today.

The Saiyans had been brutal and merciless, out to slaughter instead of merely wanting to subjugate their opponents. No, with them there wasn't even the choice of surrender. Losing meant death, not only for them but for everyone on Earth. Men, women, and children - all would be wiped out.

But Goku had saved them, he reminded himself in an attempt to calm his heartbeat. Had fought on and on beyond the point when his own body gave in. But so had the Saiyan. Vegeta.

The alien was barely taller than Krillin himself and of slighter frame than Goku but he had shown strength and endurance beyond belief. A power that almost had been their undoing.

He could still vividly remember how it felt when Vegeta beat him, how his ki had sizzled with energy and how he even got up again after he got hit squarely by a spirit bomb. Krillin had almost despaired, almost lost all hope for them, for Earth, for all their hopes and dreams.

And then when they finally made it, when Vegeta was defeated, at last, was crawling through the dirt, bleeding and groaning ... he let him go.

There was a sting in his eyes all of a sudden and he clenched them tightly.

How could he have done this? How could he let such a menace to all living beings get away? Yes, it had been Goku who asked him to stay his hand, but it was Krillin who made the choice. Krillin who didn't avenge their fallen comrades. Who had the chance to rid the universe of a great evil and didn't take it.

So maybe it was no surprise after all, that this was what he saw when he dreamed: Vegeta propped up against his spherical spaceship, falling when his glove, slick with blood, slipped off the edge he had clung to. And Krillin above him, holding Yajirobe's chipped sword. In his dream he saw the Saiyan stare up at him again, his black eyes narrowed and his bloodstained teeth bared into a snarl.

But this time there was no call from Goku. Nothing stopping him.

And just as he plunged his blade into Vegeta's throat he had jerked awake.

Krillin passed a bandaged hand over his eyes. Maybe this hadn't been a nightmare after all. Maybe he'd regret that it had been only a dream for the rest of his days.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On to the Namek saga

By now he was sure the universe hated him.

They had come so far, braved the vast expanse of space to come here to Namek where they had a chance to right everything that had gone wrong on Earth, bring back those they had lost. And then, when they had barely set foot on the planet who arrives there? Of course. Vegeta.

Krillin remembered the sinking feeling in his stomach all too well as they watched the Saiyan's spaceship enter the atmosphere and go down in a distance. The frustration, the anger, the guilt.

The mission to Namek had been his idea, his chance to bring back Yamcha and the others, even Piccolo whom he didn't particularly miss but whose death had meant devastating consequences for them nevertheless. He had told the others this wouldn't be dangerous, had talked Bulma into coming along, an inventor with no martial arts training, and had even brought Gohan, a five-year-old child. Now, granted, Gohan had already fought alongside him against Vegeta back on Earth and as a half-Saiyan was much tougher than your average child. But he was still a kid and the son of his best friend and leading him into danger like this made Krillin feel even more miserable.

Still, he was grateful to have Gohan, selfish as the feeling might be. The boy was bright, friendly and very brave. Maybe a bit too brave for Krillin's taste considering his desire to protect a Namekian kid almost got all of them killed, but then again that had turned out for the best in the end. In fact, it had meant they could learn about Grand Elder and get the final Dragon Ball, so they had another chance to prevent the apocalypse.

He smiled at the alien child, Dende, flying next to him, but got no reaction.

Of course not, he scolded himself. While Dende could fly he was far less trained in controlling his ki and so this whole ordeal had to be quite draining for him. Besides, he had just barely escaped the slaughter of his village as the sole survivor and had learned about the deaths of the residents of another village shortly thereafter. That would make it hard to remain cheerful for anyone.

Not for the first time, Krillin wondered how Vegeta was connected to those other aliens who had slaughtered Dende's village. While they were wearing the same type of armor they looked distinctly not Saiyan. Were they allies of Vegeta's? That he alerted about the existence of Dragon Balls on Namek after Krillin didn't stop him on Earth? Had Krillin even more lives on his conscience than Vegeta's victims?

He sighed. But why wasn't he with those supposed comrades and seemed to attack villages on his own? It all made no sense to Krillin. Maybe Vegeta was ... was ...

"He's coming our way!" Krillin shrieked and grabbed for Dende's arm. "Vegeta! He discovered us and is heading in our direction! We have to hide! Now!"

They dove down towards the ground, a tranquil looking archipelago. Unfortunately, none of the small islands had much to offer when it came to caves and their vegetation was scarce even for Namekian standards. Krillin picked the largest island where the shore fell towards the water as a sheer cliff face and took cover amongst the rocks along with the trembling child.

He had guessed that Vegeta had learned to sense ki and this confirmed his suspicion. Their flying must have set off enough energy for the Saiyan to detect and Vegeta's own ki was burning brightly as Krillin felt him come closer.

"Calm," he whispered towards Dende. "You need to breathe evenly. Don't let him feel we're here." But even as he said it he knew it was hopeless. Masking one's ki took a lot of training and he couldn't expect Dende to accomplish something so complex in a matter of minutes.

And then he felt something else. Another ki was out there, someone of similar strength to Vegeta. Before he even had time to wonder who this might be, he sensed Vegeta's ki veer off towards the other being.

Dende kept close to him, sounding as if he was at the verge of a panic attack. Krillin crouched next to him and placed both hands on the Namekian's shoulders. "Dende, it's okay. He went another way. We can get out of this. Maybe we can hide and wait until they forget about us."

He squinted at the horizon where both kis were speeding towards each other. Taking his own advice about staying calm was considerably harder when you didn't have someone else who confidently told you what to do and that everything would turn out alright.

Then the horizon erupted in fire. Like another sunrise energy flared up, ripping through mountains and even though they were too far away to make out details they could hear the rumble and felt the ground shaking beneath their feet.

Krillin gasped. Whoever the owner of the second ki was it had a distinctly evil feel to it and he had no desire to meet any of the two opponents. Because now it was clear to him that Vegeta was fighting. Probably even against one of the other invaders although he didn't know why. Well, it wasn't all that surprising that Vegeta had no friends even among other evil folk.

But be that as it may, while he hoped that maybe the two would kill each other he wasn't counting on it. The universe had proven once too often he'd better rely on his own wits than expect too many favors.

"Dende, hold on to me," he said putting an arm around the boy's waist. "We'll make a run for it while the bad guys are busy among themselves. I'll fly at top speed and you can rest a bit."

He didn't wait for Dende's nod and launched them back into the air. They had to make it to the Grand Elder before one of the combatants came looking for them.

Far behind them, explosions were tearing the landscape apart, but Krillin no longer looked back. Gritting his teeth he put all his strength into speed and fled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm staying relatively close to the Anime for now, but I'm planning on writing more original scenes when the source material starts all those time skips.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, sorry for the delay.
> 
> Second, I forgot to mention this but I'm no native speaker (and might word things awkwardly now and again - I'm sorry, I'm really doing my best to sound coherent) and grew up with a completely different dub. I have seen some scenes of the Funimation dub but not many. I also write most of the scenes from memory or by looking at screenshots with subtitles for the Japanese version. Most of the time I change the dialogue so it suits me better.

**Chapter 3**

Krillin had never felt this amazing. He soared through the skies, giddy with excitement and power. Even Namek's monotonous landscape seemed brighter and more colorful to him.

It was so rare that everything went according to plan, no went even better than that. Not only had he and Dende reached the Grand Elder without Vegeta or one of Freeza's men catching them, he had also gotten the last Dragon Ball. Now, as long as he held onto the orb neither Vegeta nor Freeza could summon the dragon and use it for their evil plans. And as a cherry on top, the Grand Elder had unlocked Krillin's hidden potential, giving him power he never dreamed of before.

Okay, maybe he had dreamed of power like this but to see it coming true was just unbelievable.

Krillin chuckled and clutched the Dragon Ball tighter. He finally dared hope again. If he could get Gohan to the Grand Elder, too, and when he arrived in some days maybe even Goku, they'd make a formidable fighting force.

He sped up even more, something that came so easy to him now, and scanned the rock formations ahead for the cave they had settled in. He arrived in almost the same moment he spotted the place and set down lightly right in front of Bulma.

She needed a second to notice him, but then she dropped the magazine she had been reading and jumped back, looking as if she just had a heart attack.

He barely kept from grinning but remembered in time how terrifying Bulma could be when she was mad. "Sorry to have startled you, Bulma. But maybe it'd be safer if you stayed in the cave."

Her glare made him grateful she didn't know how to hurl energy blasts at people. "You really want me to stay locked up in that dingy cave? You know how terrible that place is for my looks?"

Before he could remind her about the capsule house containing plenty of luxuries she had set up in the cave, she noticed the orb in his arms and did a double-take. "Oh, is that a Dragon Ball? Wow, it's so enormous."

He shifted the massive orb forward and presented it proudly. "Yes, they're bigger than the ones on Earth." Maybe that even meant they were more powerful, but he was well aware of how dangerous it was to judge power based on mere appearances. "Say, Bulma, where is Gohan? I have amazing news for him."

She grinned. "He's off to fetch another Dragon Ball. We saw one on the radar and ..."

Krillin frowned and held up a hand to stop her from talking. "There's a ki. Someone's coming."

"Oh, that's probably Gohan coming back."

No, that didn't feel like Gohan ...

Dread formed in his mind. How could he have been so careless? How could he have forgotten about masking his ki? How could he use all of his newfound power without even pausing to think that he was radiating ki like a bright beacon for everyone capable of reading it?

He wanted to tell Bulma to run, to hide in the cave, but it was far too late.

Vegeta flew up to them so quickly, it looked as if he had appeared out of thin air, and landed just a few steps away from them. The state of his armor hinted that he had been in battle not to long ago. One of his shoulder pads was torn off along with the suit underneath but his skin showed not a single scratch, as if he had been healed by the power of a senzu bean, although Krillin doubted that was what happened.

In any case, he seemed in excellent shape, radiating even more power than he had on Earth, and his sneer showed he was all too aware how much his strength dwarfed theirs. "I didn't expect to run into you here, Earthlings. I thought your technology wasn't quite advanced enough for space travel."

Krillin kept staring at him alternating between inwardly screaming at himself for his mistake and lamenting their fate. So was this how he was going to die?

Vegeta didn't seem to mind the lack of response. His grin widened even more as he took it all in. "It was so nice of you to save me the trouble of finding the last Dragon Ball. But keep it safe for a moment, will you? I have some business to finish first. But don't even think of running. Or I'll end not only you but also the woman."

With that, he turned and faced another newcomer. Just a few meters away a tall man whose armor showed quite a bit of his pale blueish skin landed.

By now the voices in Krillin's mind were shrieking. Idiot! How can you be so lost in your own thoughts to miss not one but two kis of such terrible and dangerous people?

First the murderous Saiyan and now one of the monsters he had seen in the entourage of Freeza as they attacked and slaughtered the inhabitants of Dende's village.

"Zarbon," he heard Vegeta greet the other alien in his most mocking tone, but before anyone else could react Bulma grabbed Krillin's shoulder.

"We're saved," she breathed. "Just look at that guy, so handsome. He has to be some sort of hero."

Krillin shivered. "I'm afraid not. You really shouldn't be judging by appearances, Bulma, he ..." He glanced back, saw her smitten expression and realized that nothing he said would get through to her right now.

He sighed and returned his attention to the two combatants who were still appraising each other and exchanging insults. He didn't know whose win would bode worse for him and Bulma. If only they'd just kill or at least incapacitate each other, then they could make a run for it. Both seemed rather confident, though, so that option was not wholly impossible.

"So you really made some allies on your trip to Earth, Vegeta," he caught Zarbon saying. "Lord Freeza suspected as much and when I saw the runt with the Dragon Ball I knew he was right."

Vegeta scoffed and for the first time Krillin found himself agreeing with him. The mere idea of them being the Saiyan's allies was absurd and thinking back to how Vegeta had murdered his own comrade once he had lost his usefulness made it even more unappealing.

"Yoohoo," Bulma called out from behind him and waved towards Zarbon. "We're not with him. On the contrary, if you could go and defeat Vegeta that would be great!"

Krillin flinched, but Vegeta only chuckled at her words while Zarbon looked nonplussed.

"You heard it, Zarbon," the Saiyan said, "get on with it. But do both of us a favor and transform now instead of wasting our time."

The other alien snarled at him and launched into an attack but without changing forms in any way. Krillin didn't care. He wasn't keen on seeing any transformations anyway. His focus lay on survival, not enjoying the spectacle.

He watched the first exchange of blows but as their battle grew fiercer he grabbed Bulma's arm and held the Dragon Ball tightly with his other hand. "Come on," he hissed at her. "We have to run."

"But Vegeta said he'd kill us," she hissed back.

"He'll do that no matter what we do. Come, we have to take that chance."

Dragging Bulma with him he moved away from the cave and then broke into a full run. They didn't get very far before the way ahead burst into flames and shattered rock. Krillin pulled Bulma down and did his best to shield her from debris. When he frantically looked around Vegeta's voice boomed over to them. "I told you to stay where you are!"

Obviously, the fight hadn't been enough to keep the Saiyan busy even though Zarbon used the distraction Krillin had caused to land a few hits. But he couldn't keep Vegeta at bay for long.

Zarbon was beginning to look quite desperate, but just when Krillin expected Vegeta to finish him, he transformed. Judging by Bulma's horrified gasps and disgusted expression that made Zarbon lose all of his appeal in her eyes, but it gave him quite a bit of muscle mass.

The fight was a bit more even now but Vegeta still kept the upper hand. He even explained to Zarbon that every near-death experience gave a Saiyan a big boost in strength which made a lot of Goku's feats more clear in hindsight. Krillin struggled not to feel jealous about it which was not easy at all because this ability would likely contribute to their getting killed today.

Then, just as Zarbon managed to grab Vegeta's head, the Saiyan landed a massive punch on his abdomen. Or rather in his abdomen. Vegeta's fist had shattered Zarbon's armor and was now buried deep within the other alien's guts. Dark blue blood ran down Vegeta's elbow but so far both combatants were still standing.

Krillin swallowed. It was over. He vaguely heard Zarbon's pleading for mercy, for an alliance, anything, but he knew Vegeta wouldn't agree to that, would never spare an opponent the way he had been spared on Earth.

The Saiyan fired an energy blast from his fist that ripped apart Zarbon's insides and tore out part of his spine. In the same fluid motion, Vegeta made a ki wave that hurled the remains into a nearby lake and thus out of sight.

Then he turned towards Krillin and Bulma and smiled. There was an almost feral gleam in his black eyes as he relished in his kill. "Now back to you," he said as he sauntered towards them. "Hand over the Dragon Ball."

Behind Krillin, Bulma cowered even more as if she could remain undetected this way. But this wouldn't work even if she hadn't drawn attention to herself and tried to talk Zarbon into defeating Vegeta before.

Running would do them no good either and fighting wasn't even an option. Krillin considered whether reminding Vegeta that he had been at his mercy was a good idea but decided against it. Considering that his first reaction to being spared had been to vow to kill them all, Vegeta might even get angry when this got brought up.

Still, there had to be a better way than just waiting to get killed. "If ... if we give it to you," he began, trying to get his shaking voice under control, "will you promise to simply leave us alone?"

His own audacity surprised him but not as much as Vegeta's chuckle. "Well, fine, why not? I suppose I could let you live for now. It's not like you're in a position to stop me, especially because now I have all the Dragon Balls and I'm going to be immortal when we'll meet again. Immortal and unstoppable. I'll end Freeza and rule the universe in his stead. There'll be plenty of time to take my revenge on Earth then."

That certainly soured the brief moment of relief Krillin had felt, but the odds of getting away without giving up the Dragon Ball hadn't improved one bit and so he walked a few more steps in Vegeta's direction and held up the orb to him.

The Saiyan snatched it away eagerly and for a moment their eyes met. Then Vegeta grinned and launched himself up again, speeding off without another word.

Krillin half waited for him to go back on what he said and hurl an attack at them but nothing came.

Bulma went up to him and clenched her fists. "What did you do? How could you just hand it over? Now he has all the Dragon Balls!"

This time he didn't back down. "He would have just killed both of us and taken it if I had tried to resist. Besides, didn't you say Gohan was off to fetch another Dragon Ball?"

"Gohan! Yes, yes, he was. Oh, no, I hope Vegeta won't find him."

Krillin nodded. "In any case, I think we should prepare to move camp as soon as Gohan comes back. Now that Vegeta knows of this place it's no longer safe here."

He went back towards the cave to pack but Bulma still stood there and looked into the direction Vegeta had flown off. Impatiently he turned back. "What is it now?"

She cocked her head. "I just thought it was strange. When he was on Earth Vegeta sure looked a bit shorter. Now, granted I only saw him on TV and in Urenai Baba's crystal ball and he was with some much taller guy, but it's almost as if he has grown since then. Maybe he ..."

Krillin stopped listening and turned around. This woman was going to be the death of him.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

"Gohan. Wake up." Krillin knelt next to the sleeping boy and gently tapped his shoulder.

Mumbling something like "'m 'wake" Gohan sat up and rubbed his eyes. A few seconds later, though, he was already alert and looked around.

He had the wide, innocent looking eyes of his father, but while Goku's were pitch black as Krillin by now assumed all Saiyan eyes were, Gohan had inherented the warm, dark brown irises of his mother. Still, up until the other Saiyans showed up and Krillin learned his best friend had been an alien, he had never even noticed or questioned Goku's not so human qualities.

In the end it made no difference. Alien or not, Goku was his friend, had never let him down and saved his life more than once. And Gohan had proven himself to be just as amazing.

"How much longer do you think we'll need to reach the Namekian Grand Elder?" the boy asked him quietly.

"Ah, it's hard to say. I don't even know for how long we've been traveling now. It's all pretty hard to say when there are several suns and it never gets dark, but I think it must be several days. I hope we can reach the Grand Elder within another day." He sighed. "The last time I made this trip I managed in under an hour. But if we want to get there without being detected we have to keep using as little ki as possible."

That's what they had been doing so far. They had been limiting their flying to not much more than hovering over obstacles and bodies of water.

Gohan took it in stride and simply nodded, but Krillin felt bad about how grim the kid looked.

"Say, Gohan, how about you tell me again how you managed to evade Vegeta when you stole a Dragon Ball from under his nose," Krillin suggested, hoping to cheer Gohan up with reminding him of his previous success and handed him his share of a meager breakfast out of his backpack.

"I alread told you I didn't evade him. I only hid the Dragon Ball and ... and he let me go."

Krillin blinked. "You said you tricked him."

"Yes. And I did. But it was complicated."

"Okay, now I'm curious." Krillin took another bite and chewed slowly. He felt a bit guilty about keeping Gohan from eating. After all the boy had inherited Goku's appetite. But he couldn't help it.

Gohan sighed. "I noticed Vegeta's ki and hid, but he had already noticed me and threatened to blow up the area I was hiding in. So I hid the Dragon Ball, came out and called out to him. He wasn't even all that surprised because he already met you. But when he said that and I saw that he had a Dragon Ball, I ... I thought ..." The boy's voice hitched and he looked away. "I was so sure he killed you. That we had failed and there'd be no way to bring back Mr. Picollo and the others."

Krillin smiled and inched closer to him. "But we haven't failed. Not yet. We still have a chance and it's thanks to you because you made it out of there with the Dragon Ball."

The kid lifted his head and returned the smile. "Yeah. We can make it,"

"So what did you do next?"

"Well, Vegeta told me he didn't kill you and I decided I had to stay calm. He asked about my dad and I told him he wasn't here. Then he noticed the Dragon Radar and asked about it. I got nervous again, but I told him it was a watch and he believed me."

Krillin stared at him for a moment, then he burst out laughing. He tried to say something but his laughing fit turned it into unintelligible giggling. Finally he managed to calm down enough to suggest: "Maybe we should ask Vegeta what time it is when we meet him again."

Gohan stared at him wide eyed as if he was afraid Krillin might have lost his mind. "I don't think making him angry is such a good idea. He'd probably try to kill us."

Krillin was still chuckling, but he nodded. "Yeah, probably not a bright thing to do. Well, nevermind. But what happened then?"

The boy looked down again, seeming even smaller and more vulnerable as he answered. "Vegeta ... he kneed me in the stomach and when I toppled over he put a foot on top of my head. He vowed he'd get back to Earth and destroy it, kill everyone, and he told me to get back there soon. Maybe so I wouldn't miss it."

That pretty much wiped all mirth from Krillin's face. He remembered Gohan limping when he came back but at the time they had been in a hurry and as they set out on their way to the Grand Elder the boy had recovered and Krillin no longer thought of asking him. He contemplated patting Gohan on the back but didn't want to make things worse with empty gestures.

They ate in silence with Gohan looking lost in his thoughts until he finally said: "What if he finds Bulma? She doesn't know how to hide her ki."

"No, but she can bitch at him." The answer was out before Krillin could stop himself. At Gohan's look he sighed. "I know, I know. Leaving her behind with the Dragon Ball is a risk, but taking it along - or her for that matter - would slow us down even more. And that would make it even more dangerous for all of us."

Gohan nodded and looked tentatively the way they came. "At least he didn't find her yet. If he did he would have summoned the dragon and the sky would have turned black."

"Yeah. Besides, there is some wildlife around with similar ki to Bulma's and I don't think he's that good in ki reading yet. Back when he was on Earth he was still using this scouter thing to detect them and he only seems to picked up on doing it without them from us."

"It's kinda scary how quickly he learned that."

"Hmm," Krillin murmured. "He is far too clever sometimes." He grinned. "At least if he doesn't have to tell apart a radar and a watch."

This time Gohan grinned back.


	5. Chapter 5

As far as Krillin was able to tell they had been flying for hours. But now he finally made out the rock formation he knew was crowned with the dome-shaped building the Grand Elder resided it. Unfortunately, it was almost all the way to the horizon.

They'd probably have to stop for another meal and maybe even a longer rest before reaching the place if they continued at their current pace.  He was doubtful whether  they  could afford this much time. Not to mention that they were about to run out of provisions and finding something edible on an alien world was a gamble he'd prefer to avoid.

"Gohan? I think we may have to change our plan. If we risk it and speed up we can get there in a few minutes. I don't think we can spare another day going at this snail pace."

The boy looked at him thoughtfully and nodded. "I just hope we are far enough away from Vegeta so he won't notice."

They weren't.

Just a few minutes passed since they powered up and used their focused ki to propel them toward the rocky spire in the distance and already they picked up something. It felt like a faint scent at first but it was closing on them fast.

"He's coming!" Gohan shouted.

Krillin tried speeding up even more, but it was hopeless. They wouldn't make it to the spire before Vegeta caught up with them. He struggled with what choices he had, then  he stopped in mid-air. "Gohan, you go on ahead without me. Go see the Grand Elder and ask him to unlock your potential."

At the first word he said Gohan had halted as well and was staring at him wide-eyed. "But you won't have a chance all alone."

"I know. But maybe I can buy you enough time to get the power boost we need to defeat Vegeta."

Gohan struggled with the thought of leaving him behind but after a second he nodded and flew off in a hurry.

Krillin took a deep breath. He took off his almost empty backpack and dropped it to the ground.  Getting rid of it probably wouldn't do him much good but any chance at being more nimble was worth taking. 

He looked towards the horizon in the direction they came from but couldn't make out any movements so far. But that was no reason to let down his guard. By now he could feel Vegeta's ki very distinctly and his speed was amazing. How could that monster traverse half the planet in a matter of minutes?

Should he try talking to Saiyan? Or brace for an immediate attack?

He hadn't made up his mind when he caught a flash of something in the distance and just two heartbeats later Vegeta sped past him before stopping a few meters from him and slowly turning around.

He looked much the same as when he had confronted Krillin and Bulma a few days ago with his battle-worn outfit and murder in his eyes. He had even brought the same Dragon Ball with him he had taken from them and held it now tucked under one arm. If anything he had a bit more haggard touch to his face that made Krillin briefly wonder whether he had had any food or sleep in the meantime.

"Yo!" Vegeta greeted him, sounding so nonchalant Krillin felt even more off guard.

"I'm impressed you found us so quickly," he managed, "and from half a world away."

Vegeta smirked and casually flipped him off. "My skills are at a completely different level, Earthling."

Yes. Although they apparently still weren't good enough to find Bulma. But Krillin wasn't foolish enough to say that.

"It was very audacious of you to steal from me," Vegeta continued, anger rising in his voice. "What made you think you could get away with mocking me like that? I want it back. Now!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Krillin wished his voice didn't tremble so badly.

"Oh, spare me these games. I'll make you talk soon enough." With a menacing grin, Vegeta started floating towards him.

Stay calm,  Krillin told himself. Keep breathing, don't show him your fear, think of your training. Yeah, right. As if his training with Muten Roshi included getting beaten into a pulp by an alien on some alien world while not giving away any info about your companions.

But Vegeta had not yet reached punching distance when he froze and looked over his shoulder in the direction of the rock spire in the distance. "What is that?"

Gohan! He must have reached the Grand Elder's residence by now, but Krillin still couldn't pick up any difference in power. Just a bit longer! He had to distract Vegeta for just another moment.

But the Saiyan seemed to have lost interest in Krillin and frowned. "That mountain. I saw Kakarot's son fly there bu t ... There's something else there."

No! Too early! Krillin flinched. He tried to get himself under control again, but Vegeta had already noticed his reaction. "That's where you hid the Dragon Ball, isn't it?"

"No, we didn't!" Krillin protested, but Vegeta was already on the move. Calling out to him, begging him to step, Krillin followed as best as he could.

The Saiyan kept ignoring him but at least he paused as soon as he had reached the Grand Elder's hall and looked around in surprise. "What is this place?" Krillin heard him whisper.

"Vegeta. Please wait." He caught himself just as he was about to reach for Vegeta's arm. Thankfully, the Saiyan hadn't seen that because his attention was focused on another newcomer.

The Namekian warrior who watched over the Grand Elder had stepped out of the building and was staring at the two of them before settling his gaze solely on Vegeta. "Leave!" he said simply.

The Saiyan chuckled. "Sounds like you can't wait to die."

Krillin licked his lips. The Namekian, Nail, had been introduced to him as their strongest warrior when he came here with Dende and he had learned never to underestimate Namekian warriors. But he also knew Nail would loathe fighting so close to his master given how poor the Grand Elder's health had become. Could he drive Vegeta away while also protecting the Grand Elder?

Before either made a move something happened inside. Gohan's ki skyrocketed all of a sudden and Krillin felt both triumph and worry. His plan had worked but he had also drawn danger to the Grand Elder. And there was no guarantee Gohan's new strength would be enough to stand a chance against Vegeta even if he and Nail joined forces.

The Saiyan's head whipped around as he too felt the increase of power somewhere in the dome-shaped building, then he nodded to himself. "So Kakarot is here, after all, isn't he? Fine. Then we can settle this today." He clenched his fist and called out towards the door. "Come out of there, Kakarot!"

Krillin no longer felt bothered by Vegeta's insistence on using Goku's Saiyan name, but mistaking Gohan for his father was a different matter. He raised an eyebrow but  just as he opened his mouth Gohan appeared in the doorway and stepped out to them. His face was grim as he passed by Nail and took his stance in front of Vegeta.

The older Saiyan realized his mistake quickly enough and glared back at the boy. "You? What did you do in there? How could your power rise so much in such a short time?"

Vegeta's reaction was enough to make all of Krillin's fears and doubts vanish into thin air. If the Saiyan was this surprised and flustered it could only mean that they had the upper hand. Together with Nail und Gohan, he could ...

Vegeta started to chuckle, then threw back his head and roared with laughter. "Really? You guys think you can handle me?" He snorted and looked at them all with an amused smile. "I'll admit, your boost in power came as a surprise, but you're now about on the same level as Kakarot when we fought on Earth, kid. And I'm much beyond that."

Krillin felt his heart plummet again. Still, there wasn't much of a choice but to fight Vegeta as best as they could and hope their numbers and a bit of rare luck would help them out.

Suddenly, Dende's head appeared in the doorway,  panting  and his eyes wide with fear. "The Grand Elder ..." he shouted, "The Elder said another power is approaching the planet!"

Their first reaction was surprise and confusion, especially in Vegeta's case who didn't even know who the Grand Elder was. Krillin recovered first and pumped his fist. "I know! It's gotta be Goku! He's arrived at the planet at last!"

Gohan frowned and like the others squinted into the sky as if trying to hear a whisper from outer space. "I don't know. It feels as if there are several people coming."

Vegeta gave a start. "It can't be!" he hissed. "It mustn't!" He stared upwards and his lips were moving as he tried to discern the energy signatures of whoever this was. "There are five of them," he whispered  hoarsely. "It's the Ginyu Force. Freeza summoned the Ginyu Force!"

Krillin had never seen Vegeta this shaken. But before he could ask about it the Saiyan cursed loudly, rushed forward and hoisted Gohan up by his collar. "You have to give me the last Dragon Ball! Now! Before it's too late!"

Gohan glared down at him. "We'll never do that!"

"I promise," Vegeta barked back sounding increasingly desperate. "When the Dragon Balls made me immortal I won't harm you! But if we don't act now it will all be too late!"

Krillin shook his head. "Do you really think we'll fall for that? Giving you all that you want just because you say so?"

Vegeta dropped Gohan  unceremoniously and turned towards Krillin. "Listen, you bastards. The Ginyu Force is Freeza's very special task force. They are five warriors who are as strong as me or even stronger. They'll have scouters and they'll hunt down both me and all of you and kill us."

That sounded really bad but only if it was true. So far Vegeta hadn't quite made a name for himself as being especially trustworthy and Krillin wasn't ready to give him the benefit of the doubt so easily. "I don't believe ..."

"Don't you sense them?" Vegeta interrupted him and came a step closer. "We only have this one chance. If we make me immortal I can defeat them."

"He might speak the truth," Nail spoke up. "There really are five evil powers out there."

Reluctantly, Krillin sent out his mental feelers and searched a little harder. Yes, there were five kis out there and none of them had Goku's friendly disposition. In fact, there was something truly sinister to them although he might have said the same about the way Vegeta's ki felt.

But even if he was right this route just felt so wrong to Krillin. There had to be another way. There had to! "Then how about we make Gohan immortal?"

Vegeta was already shaking his head before Krillin had finished speaking. He gestured to the half-Saiyan who only now was getting back on his feet. "He may be relatively strong, but he has almost no battle experience. He's but a child with no tactical training."

Krillin closed his eyes and turned his head away, afraid of bursting into tears with frustration. "But we came so far for our wish!" he stammered. "We can't throw it all away now!"  They couldn’t use the wish to revive  their fallen friends on the one who was responsible for their deaths. 

Nail looked at him curiously. "Our dragon can  fulfill more than one wish. He grants three wishes."

"Three?" both Krillin and Gohan echoed, but Nail didn't elaborate any further.

Vegeta, on the other hand, looked as if he was about to explode. He grabbed Krillin with his free hand and pulled him close. "Don't just stand there and repeat everything he says. We have no time to lose! We might even be too late now, so get a move on!"

Krillin really didn't appreciate his personal space being violated like this but he could also see how much Vegeta was on the verge of a panic, so he didn't try to shake free. "I need to know this before making a decision," he explained curtly then looked at Nail. "So we really can have three wishes granted?"

The Namekian nodded and it was all Krillin needed. He turned to look straight into Vegeta's eyes. There was malice there but also fear. He knew better than to trust someone like this but all their options sounded terrible either way. Maybe a temporary alliance would be their best chance after all. "Follow me," he said through clenched teeth.

Vegeta immediately let go of him and they launched themselves into the air almost simultaneously. Gohan followed suit and then the race was on again. This time though it was the three of them against a common enemy.

"Go as fast as you can!" Vegeta snarled at him and Krillin half expected him to fly on ahead. But no, Vegeta needed them, needed the last Dragon Ball, and for that, he was apparently ready to compromise.

Still, it didn't seem like a good idea to test his patience.

Krillin glanced at Gohan flying on his other side but thanks to his recent power boost the boy was more than capable in keeping up. He focused all his ki on his speed himself and breathed evenly.

Now they only had to make it in time.


	6. Chapter 6

They almost made it.

At first, things had been going so smoothly. They had reached Bulma in next to no time and left again with the Dragon Ball before she even registered Vegeta was with them. Or at least, Krillin assumed she didn't notice, but he had so grown used to tuning out her nagging he didn't pay much attention to what she was complaining about.

Vegeta had led them to his own hideout where the remaining five Dragon Balls were waiting for them. Unfortunately, that was also the moment the Ginyu Force arrived and things went from bad to worse.

They weren't exactly what Krillin had expected Freeza's elite to be, with all their posturing and the nonchalant way they treated the whole endeavor. Still, given the way they talked to Vegeta, how they mocked him and called him "little Veggie" with apparently not a worry about how he might pay them back, Krillin assumed they had a lot of power to back them up.

In a way, they reminded him of the other monks back at Orin temple where he grew up before running away to become Muten Roshi's student. At least as far as mocking was concerned. Of course, his former brothers never were so eager to murder him they played rock paper scissors for that privilege, but the feeling of helplessness in the face of ridicule, of being underestimated and treated as if he was worthless, was all too familiar.

Krillin frowned at the thought. Vegeta was really the last person he wanted to find similarities to.

He shifted his focus on the opponent who had "won" the privilege of killing him and Gohan. It was the shortest among the Ginyu Force, a squat, four-eyed alien whose skin had the color of murky swamp water. They called him Guldo and he seemed to be the most emotional about hating Vegeta.

A pity that they wouldn't be able to leave them to settle their differences on their own, but at least Guldo didn't seem particularly strong. On the other hand, he had been able to steal a Dragon Ball right out of Krillin's grasp and Vegeta had hinted he might have done that by controlling time. That was worrying enough but he wanted to face off against the others even less. He hadn't seen them fight yet, only experienced the blue-skinned one demonstrate extraordinary speed as he took Vegeta's Dragon Ball, and yet Krillin could feel all too well how much they were out of his league.

Their leader, Ginyu, had left, but even that was no relief, as he had taken all the Dragon Balls with him to get Freeza the immortality the tyrant so desired.

Krillin straightened himself and stared at Guldo, trying to come ap with a strategy when Vegeta motioned for him to come closer and then leaned over.

"Be careful with Guldo," he instructed Krillin in hushed tones. "He isn't all that strong physically, but he has strange powers. You'd better not attack him directly."

Krillin nodded and looked at their opponents nervously. The Ginyus had obviously noticed them talking, but seemed more amused than bothered.

Vegeta kept his eyes on them as well, but for a moment he glanced at Krillin as if struggling with another thought. "Is Kakarot really not on the planet?"

Krillin raised an eyebrow. Did Vegeta think they had been lying about that? Was he hoping for or fearing Goku's presence? Given that Goku had vowed to beat Vegeta should he ever come back to Earth he wasn't sure how the Saiyan felt about it.

"He isn't," Krillin finally replied truthfully. "But we heard he is on his way and close."

Vegeta acknowledged his reply with a grunt. "As much as I hate this insufferable fool, we could really use another ally."

Fair enough.

Krillin swallowed all further remarks and with a glance at Gohan they moved forward in unison. For a moment he felt rather vulnerable about turning his back towards Vegeta, but then he kicked himself into focusing solely on Guldo. Deal with the immediate threat and worry about any betrayals later, he reminded himself.

Then the fight was on.

It went quite well for a while. As Vegeta said, Guldo wasn't all that strong and if it weren't for his special powers he probably would never have been accepted as a member of the Ginyu Force.

Most of the time they even had him on the back foot. Krillin and Gohan kept chasing him and Guldo was forced to freeze time so he could escape their attacks. But as he could only freeze time for as long as he held his breath he never managed to get far enough away to position himself for a counter-attack.

Then they cornered him and Krillin felt pride about their impending win as him and Gohan rushed forward to strike the decisive blow. Only to have his pride crumble as he realized he couldn't land a blow. Nor fire off a ki bolt. Nor move.

In fact, both he and Gohan were floating on the spot, unable to do much other than breathe and feel embarrassed.

"I told you not to attack him directly!", Vegeta scolded them from somewhere below and Krillin didn't know whether to feel more annoyed with himself for getting too cocky or with the Saiyan for nagging instead of helping.

He felt like shouting back that Vegeta had failed to tell them about Guldo being able to not only stop time but also people's movements but that comeback would have to wait until Guldo released them. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be a time limit or prerequisite like holding your breath for this technique.

He kept trying to break free when the first rock hit his arm, following by others impacting his belly, his face and basically the rest of him. He couldn't turn his head to see whether Guldo had thrown anything at them but the sheer amount of rocks suggested the alien was probably using his mind powers for this.

Great!

He wasn't too worried about the damage these would do although the impacts definitely hurt and not being able to evade or block made even these rocks and lumps of dirt more than bothersome. But it wasn't anything he or Gohan couldn't handle.

Then the hail stopped and a moment later Guldo appeared hovering in his field of vision. He grinned manically and floated closer to Krillin. "So, you thought you could mock me? Win against me?" He grabbed the collar of Krillin's suit and punched him in the face. "I'll show you. I'll repay you for all that humiliation."

With that, he punched him again. And again. And kicked him. Guldo started counting his punches and kicks and when he was past thirty he switched his attention to Gohan, giving him the same treatment and mocking them both.

Krillin found breathing to be hard; blood trickled down from his split lip and a cut above one eyebrow. He blinked the blood away and clenched his teeth. He had to get away, break free and help Gohan!

But he couldn't even help himself.

Desperately, he reached inside himself, focused on his ki and in his mind pictured himself soaring upwards, but to no avail.

"Get on with the killing, Guldo," came the voice of one of the other Ginyu Force members from outside of Krillin's view. "We haven't got all day and I want to get around to play with little Veggie."

Guldo grumbled a bit but he nevertheless agreed and flew off. Krillin wondered whether the little guy wanted to maybe gather more momentum so that his strikes would do more damage than just hurt a little. But then Guldo telepathically moved an uprooted tree towards them, clearly wanting them to see what he was planning to do. He freed the tree from roots and branches and broke off the top, creating a surprisingly pointy large skewer.

Krillin felt an icy dread in his stomach. This would be a really lousy way to die.

He renewed his efforts to break free, but all he got was laughter from Guldo who had landed again so he could put all his focus on making sure his victims stayed put. If only Krillin could break his concentration, distract him somehow maybe shout math problems at him or something like that but he couldn't even open his mouth and all the sounds he was capable of were frantic groaning.

If only Goku was here! But that was wishful thinking, he knew. Krillin had come all this way to die here.

He saw the oversized skewer move towards him and screamed inwardly. Dodge! Dodge now!

And then he was suddenly free and all the ki he had gathered catapulted him and Gohan upwards. The tree hurtled past them and got slower and slower until it tumbled to the ground.

In wonder, Krillin peered down to see what had happened. He saw Guldo's body toppled over and not too far away the alien's severed head lying at Vegeta's feet.

Krillin's mind was a jumble of thoughts as he landed a few steps away from Vegeta. Did he really owe his life to the Saiyan? Or did Guldo suffer a sudden fortunate accident? He couldn't say which scenario he found less likely.

Bizarrely, Guldo's head was still talking. "You cheating bastard! The fight was between me and these two earthlings. You had no right to interfere, Vegeta!"

The Saiyan laughed. "I don't remember agreeing to those terms. But you always were a sore loser, Guldo."

With that he raised a hand and fired a quick ki blast right into Guldo's face, ending that conversation and Guldo's life in an almost nonchalant way.

Krillin swallowed and came closer. "Thank you for-"

"I didn't do that to save you two pathetic fools," Vegeta interrupted him. "I saw a chance to get rid of Guldo and I took it. That's all."

Krillin stared at him for a second and blinked slowly. Why was Vegeta so eager not to do anything to get along with them? Why did he have to make you feel foolish for being grateful that someone saved your life? Oh, right, because he was evil and they were only working together out of necessity.

Gritting his teeth Krillin turned towards Gohan. The kid looked a bit battered but seemed to have taken no serious damage. Instead, there was a look of wonder as he stared at Vegeta. Krillin was about to tell him not to bother with thanking the Saiyan when the other Ginyu Force members noticed what had happened.

"Oh great, they got Guldo. That's going to ruin all our poses."

"Yeah, where do we get someone else who has the right size for that?"

Leave it to Vegeta's former comrades to be just as despicable as him. Still, they had more pressing problems right now as the one who had "won" the right to take on Vegeta stepped forward - a red-haired giant who called himself Recoome.

Out of all the Ginyu Force members, he looked the least alien, but that made him no less threatening. He was of massive stature and taller than even Goku. Next to him, Vegeta looked almost like a child - slim and frail.

But Krillin had seen Vegeta fight before, had seen him shake off blows that would have killed others and deal out damage that belied his short stature.

He had been on the receiving end of getting underestimated himself and knew all too well judging by looks was a bad idea.

And so he stepped aside and waited next to Gohan as Vegeta got into a battle posture and walked towards his opponent, his face grim and his jaw set.

For as little love he held towards the Saiyan, for the first time he hoped Vegeta would win.


	7. Chapter 7

Vegeta was bleeding. His armor had been smashed and torn in several places, the shoulder guard ripped off and the suit he wore underneath shredded with bits of bruised and bloodied skin showing through. From a gash on his forehead blood trickled into his eyes and stained his left cheek where he had tried to wipe it off only to spread it further.

Krillin wasn't sure about internal injuries but Vegeta's labored breathing made him worry. It was a small miracle the Saiyan had managed to get back up on his feet after Recoome had smashed him face-first into the rocky ground.

But the worst thing was that Vegeta had fought more fiercely than ever before, had given his all and landed several truly powerful blows and yet Recoome had shrugged it all off. His armor and clothing were arguably in even worse shape than Vegeta's but all the damage he had taken was superficial.

It reminded Krillin all too much of their attempts to stop Vegeta back on Earth when the Saiyan got up again every time they believed to have won. It gave him little comfort that Vegeta was now on the receiving end of this. After all, he and Gohan had to share the dread of facing an unstoppable monster, too.

In any case, the Saiyan wasn't in any shape to continue. Krillin could see him tremble with the effort not to collapse while Recoome announced he'd deal the killing blow now.

But more than any visible damage it was Vegeta's expression that made Krillin sure that this was the end. He had seen the defiant snarl in the face of certain death before as he had stood over the Saiyan with a sword to Vegeta's throat.

But now things were different. Now they needed him.

"Gohan," he whispered to the kid. "Vegeta won't survive another attack. And once he's gone we'll be next. We have to try and save him."

The boy nodded gravely.

Krillin sighed. Their odds were pretty terrible, but this was better than doing nothing. "Get him out of harm's way. I'll try to get the drop on Recoome."

That was when Recoome was done posturing and blabbering about. He started charging up another attack by gathering energy in his mouth and they had run out of time.

Krillin saw Gohan speed towards Vegeta just as he himself catapulted on top of Recoome. He kicked down with all his strength and it was at least enough to get Recoome to shut up. Literally.

The gathered energy burst forth, but since Krillin's kick forced Recoome's jaws shut tightly it tried to find a way out knocking out several teeth.

As Recoome collapsed, Krillin landed lightly and looked around to see if Gohan had been in time. Over where Vegeta had been standing a deep trench had torn the Namekian hills apart ending in a wide gulf that reshaped the entire landscape. Krillin swallowed. If the beam caused this much destruction even though he had cut it short how could Vegeta have survived-

He spotted movement amidst the rubble a good bit left of the trench and sighed with relief.

Vegeta was pushing Gohan off him, spitting dirt and ungrateful scoldings at the boy for risking his life to save another instead of going for the kill on their opponent.

But Krillin had no time to be angry about that reaction. Recoome was stirring again and jumped up with a nimbleness that belied his massive stature. He swirled around towards Krillin, his nose and ears still emitting puffs of smoke, and grinned menacingly showing off his ruined teeth.

"My, my, little one. That hurt a bit. I think I might be a tad angry about that." He turned towards his comrades who had been watching and commenting from the sidelines. "Hey, Burter, Jeice. How about I get to kill the little Earthlings, too? What do you say? Please?"

Krillin took a step back, deeply disturbed about the cheerful sound of Recoome's question, but Burter and Jeice seemed to share his nonchalance towards killing, even if it included a child.

"Okay, fine," Burter called back. "But only if you treat us later to some chocolate parfaits."

Monsters. They were all monsters.

Recoome chuckled and closed in on Krillin, clearly savoring the moment. Then he swirled around again and before Krillin could react a mighty kick connected to his chest. He heard his rips break before he even felt the pain and then he was flying, bouncing and skidding over the rocky ground.

He was mildly surprised he didn't lose consciousness but not very happy. He really could have done without experiencing what it felt like when a majority of your bones were shattered like that.

"Krillin! Krillin!!" Gohan dropped to his knees next to him, but he couldn't bear looking at him.

He briefly contemplated telling him to run, but that would only prolong the inevitable. "It's over," he whispered hoarsely, straining to get it all out. "There's no way we can win against a monster like that. He's too strong. Even Goku couldn't ..." He trailed off, thinking about how if only Goku ran away now, if he didn't even try to reach the planet he'd have a chance to survive. Krillin tried to focus on that thought. Goku had spoken to him telepathically before. If he could make that connection now he might be able to warn him.

But the pain made everything hazy. Giving up, he returned his attention to the here and now, and realized Gohan was no longer by his side. No, in spite of the hopelessness of their situation, he was still fighting. Krillin couldn't see him but he felt Gohan's anger, felt his ki flare up as he took on Recoome, got knocked down and kept getting back up.

It hurt him. But gritting his teeth against the shame of not being able to help and the pain of his wrecked body, Krillin pushed himself up on his elbows to be able to watch.

There was no denying of Gohan's talent and courage. The boy fought with a fierceness that made even Vegeta stare at him slack-jawed. And yet Krillin didn't dare hope. He knew that in the end, it was all in vain, that Gohan was merely inviting more pain as he refused to succumb to Recoome's overwhelming strength much to the large man's amusement.

And then it was over.

Krillin saw one of Recoome's massive legs connect with Gohan's neck, heard his gasp of pain, saw how he thudded against the rocks and then remained still, blood seeping from his mouth and his head at an odd angle. And he felt Gohan's ki ebb away.

Jeice and Burter were chuckling. "Looks like you broke his neck," Krillin heard one of them say.

Recoome had the gall to let out a cheer and Vegeta, instead of focusing his ire on their opponents, growled at the kid for not living up to his expectations. Between this and Jeice's tracking the dwindling numbers of Gohan's life force with his scouter, Krillin couldn't even say who he hated most.

All he wanted to do was finally be free of it all. Why couldn't he lose consciousness already? Why did he have to witness this?

But then he felt something like a fresh breeze in his mind and he knew before anyone else noticed that Goku had arrived. A moment later the surprised shouts of the Ginyu Force proved him right.

Krillin laid back and closed his eyes, a smile forming on his lips. He couldn't help it. His best friend was here and as hopeless as the situation was Goku's presence brought an unreasonable sense of relief.

Then Gohan's ki was back in full force, maybe even stronger, and Krillin knew Goku had given his son a senzu bean. The Ginyus, on the other hand, sounded really offended by having been denied to witness the death of this child, but so far they merely kept to watching the events unfold.

"I'll be with you in a second, Krillin," Goku called out to him.

"No rush," he mouthed. "I'm not going anywhere." Propping himself on one elbow again he got a look at father and son united at last and his smile widened in spite of the pain.

Then he noticed Vegeta and the way he was staring at Goku. He was still kneeling in the rubble, cradling one arm and blood dripping from his chin. But his eyes were alert and as piercing as always.

Goku chose this moment to give the other Saiyan a long look as well. "What happened to Vegeta?" he asked Gohan as the two of them strolled towards Krillin.

"The one with the pineapple-shaped hair beat him up," Gohan replied gesturing at Recoome. "He was so strong, dad, it was terrible."

Having now reached Krillin Goku held up a hand to stop Gohan from elaborating further. Then he knelt at Krillin's side and offered him a senzu bean as well.

Pain made Krillin's hand shake quite badly as he took it and shoved it in his mouth. He never knew whether to describe a senzu's effect as soothing or invigorating, but the way all his hurt disappeared never failed to amaze him. And yet there was a sadness in his smile as he got back to his feet. "Thank you, Goku. Even though I don't know if I should really be happy about you healing us."

"Huh?"

"It's just so hopeless. These guys are so monstrously strong and now you healed us only to have us go through this hell again. Even you can't stand against them. Vegeta tried and look at how that turned out."

Goku's eyes flickered back to the other Saiyan. "Yeah, I was about to ask about that. Aren't these his allies?"

"They used to be, but he seems to have left them, I think," Krillin replied haltingly, trying to find a good way to sum up what had happened since they arrived on Namek.

Goku furrowed his brow as if focussing on a distant voice. Then Krillin felt him touch his mind telepathically but instead of exchanging words he pulled out mental images of the past days. Their shock at discovering Freeza's forces raiding Namek. Their struggle to find and keep the Dragonballs. Vegeta offering a truce and their battle with the Ginyu Force.

"I think I understand," Goku said. "It was a bit fuzzy, but it looked like Bulma is safe. And Vegeta is just as nasty as ever but he fought at your side and saved you. Is that right?"

Krillin nodded, impressed Goku would adapt their telepathy to access his memories and find out the most important bits much faster than Krillin could explain anything.

Smiling as if that settled everything Goku turned around and fished in the little bag he had brought along for another senzu bean. "The last one," he said with a sigh, then he raised his voice. "Hey, Vegeta! Catch!"

Before Krillin could even say anything, Goku had already hurled the bean. Recoome tried to intercept it, giving Krillin half a heart attack, but then he saw Vegeta deftly catch it and wasn't even sure he preferred this outcome.

Considering how precious these beans were with their ability to save someone from mortal wounds, he'd have safeguarded the last one for the next emergency that was sure to come, instead of handing it to someone who had tried to kill them all before.

Vegeta looked just as surprised and nonplussed as Krillin felt, but after staring at Goku for another moment, he shoved it in his mouth. A second later he was on his feet again, all the visible gashes closed and Krillin could have sworn his shoulders got a bit broader and more muscular.

But Krillin couldn't imagine that this would be enough. The way Recoome had dominated them there was no way that one more fighter on their side was going to make a difference, especially since there were two more opponents on the sidelines waiting for their turn. "What are you doing, Goku? Why are you healing him? Do you want all four of us to fight? Listen, this won't work. That guy is a monster and even if you and Vegeta go against him together there's no way we can win."

Goku just smiled without the least bit of worry. "I didn't heal Vegeta for that. I still want our rematch for the fight on Earth and he needs to survive until then. I can take on these punks on my own."

Krillin's jaw dropped open. He didn't know what had happened to Goku in outer space but it had clearly driven him to madness. Back on Earth when he had fought Vegeta Goku wouldn't have survived without his son and his friends. He even admitted that Vegeta was stronger than him. Now on Namek Vegeta had grown even more powerful and yet Goku thought he could handle an opponent who had beaten him into a pulp. It just made no sense to Krillin.

Yet when he looked at Vegeta again the surprise in the Saiyan's face had turned into a kind of anticipation as if he knew something Krillin didn't.

In any case, there was nothing Krillin could do to stop Goku. For all his doubts, he couldn't deny that Goku had turned the tide more than once. He could only hope he'd make another miracle come true.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this is taking me longer and longer. Unfortunately, I had even more work than usual in the last weeks and went through a creative slump before that. I hope things'll look up again soon.

With a shuddering thud, Goku dropped Burter's motionless body to the ground. Krillin saw the blue-skinned alien's chest heave and fall but other than that there wasn't even a twitch.

He grinned widely. When Goku had dealt with Recoome like this it had still come as almost a shock how swiftly and deftly that defeat had been. Goku was so much faster and stronger - there was no contest. A single blow to Recoome's abdomen had brought the massive fighter to his knees and fold over.

Then Jeice and Burter had attacked him in tandem but Goku outmaneuvered them both before landing the  decisive blow on Burter. Now,  of all their opponents, only Jeice was left and judging b y the horrified look on his face he knew he was out of his league here.

Krillin felt like cheering but he didn't want to steal this moment from Goku.

His friend  didn’t keep up  the pressure on Jeice and  instead  looked at him with  a polite half-smi le . "I think this settles it, don't you think?" he told the white-haired alien. "Your comrades aren't dead, don't worry, but they aren't in a shape to fight any longer. Now, just take them with you, leave the planet, and promise you won't bother us anymore."

Well, Krillin should've expected something like this. After all, starting with Piccolo Goku had made it a habit to give his opponents another chance and-

"Kakarot, you fool!" Vegeta yelled at him, anger and now dried blood contorting his face into a grotesque mask. "Finish them! Finish them now! Don't let them get away!"

Of course. The one who wouldn't even be here if Goku had handled him this way had to shout the loudest.

Goku was already shaking his head. "But they're no longer a threat. Even if they got up again I can handle them. There's really no reason to kill them."

Vegeta's only reply was a low growl, but Krillin didn't pay much attention to him. His fears had dissolved into thin air with every attack Goku had evaded and every punch he landed. His earlier panic and hopelessness forgotten, he couldn't believe Vegeta had to be so dramatic about it. After all, Goku would protect him as well if Jeice decided to attack them again. 

He contemplated explaining as much to the Saiyan but before he could say anything, Jeice had finally made up his mind. He swirled around and sped off without another glance at his fallen comrades.

Goku blinked, honestly surprised. "Huh, so much for that. He just left his allies like this." He looked at the two with a twinge of regret. "And I'm afraid, I can't help you either. I'm out of senzu beans for sure."

Krillin couldn't say he shared that sentiment.  H e wasn't even happy Goku had used a senzu on Vegeta and he was their ally for the moment. Still, he wasn't about to scold Goku for it or remind him that one of these poor souls had broken his son's neck not too long ago while the other cheered him on. Krillin was simply too relieved how well things had turned out and how great it was to be reunited with his best friend.

"You were amazing, Goku. You've grown so much stronger! I hardly recognized you."

Goku smiled at him and opened his mouth to answer when a sudden movement made them both start. 

Vegeta had launched himself in the air, hurtled toward them, and slammed his knee into Burter's throat, crushing his windpipe. In a fluid motion, he got up again, turned and fired a strong ki blast into Recoome.

Krillin gagged when the smell of charred flesh drafted over to them, avoiding to look and check how little of Recoome remained.

"Vegeta! How could you do that?" Goku looked almost hurt. "I told you they weren't a threat anymore. They were completely helpless."

The other Saiyan spat at his feet. "You're so soft, it makes me sick. And to think I had even considered whether you might have been capable of being the legendary Super Saiyan... But you just don't have what it takes."

Goku blinked. "Super Saiyan? What's that?" he asked, putting the confusion Krillin felt into words.

Vegeta didn't seem to be in a mood to elaborate, though. Or for all Krillin knew he might have made the term up just to berate Goku. On the other hand, with his hands clenched into fists, his nostrils flaring, and his black eyes narrowed, he looked far too angry to make up silly words. "You could have stopped him. You could have rid us of a threat who is bound to cause more trouble as soon as he finds Ginyu or even Freeza himself. But, no, you want to show off. Well, Kakarot, you may have gotten stronger but I promise you, it won't be enough to handle Freeza. You have no idea how terrible he is."

Just half an hour ago Krillin would probably have agreed with him. But now? After everything they had seen? With three of these elite fighters gone and the remaining two driven off, Vegeta's fears felt absurd to him. In fact, he wondered why he had ever felt as frightened as he did. Why he didn't have more faith in Goku who had saved them time and again. 

Krillin promised himself he wouldn't doubt Goku again. "Are you sure you're not seeing this too bleakly?" he asked Vegeta, careful not to seem too dismissive of his overdramatic proclamations of doom. "You saw how powerful Goku has become. These guys didn't stand a chance against him. The way I see it, there's no one stopping him now."

Next to him, Gohan was nodding vigorously to every word he said, but Vegeta merely scoffed. "So sure of that are you? Well, go ahead then! Challenge Freeza and see for yourself."

Krillin's shoulders sagged. He glanced at Goku, hoping for a word of confidence but Vegeta wasn't done yet.

"What's even worse is that he is immortal now for sure. It's been a while since Ginyu left with the Dragon Balls and he's bound to have gotten his wish by now. Defeating him in this state will be next to impossible. We can only hope we'll be able to evade him."

At that, something in Krillin's eyes lit up. "I don't think he already made his wish."

Vegeta came a bit closer. "What? How would you know that?"

"Well, assuming the Dragon Balls here work the same as those on Earth, when you have gathered them and Shenlong appears the sky turns dark. That hasn't happened here. The sky is still as bright as ever."

"Shenlong?" Vegeta looked equally confused and annoyed. "What is that? Does something come out of the Dragon Balls when you have them all?"

To Krillin's delight and satisfaction, Goku ignored him and kept staring into the sky thoughtfully. "That's it! You're right, Krillin. The dragon hasn't been summoned yet. Freeza probably doesn't even know the password."

"You need a password?" Vegeta croaked, clenching his fists even harder. 

Krillin might have felt more inclined to explain everything to him if Vegeta had been a bit more forthcoming with information himself. But since the Saiyan seemed to function on a need to know basis when it came to the abilities of the Ginyu Force and liked to hint at strange terms like the "Super Saiyan" he mentioned earlier without explaining himself, Krillin was content with discussing the situation with Goku and Gohan instead. "Exactly," he said as Goku turned towards him, beaming widely. "I don't think Freeza bothered to learn how the Dragon Balls really work."

"That means we can still get our wish." Goku looked so giddy  Krillin couldn’t help but cheer.

"Yeah!"

"We can bring back all our fallen friends."

Gohan whooped with joy, grabbed Krillin's hands and jumped up and down. Krillin laughed with him, allowing himself the first moment of true hope and happiness in quite a while.

Unfortunately, they hadn't made it yet. "Goku, first of all, we need to get the Dragon Balls back."

"Right."

"Finding them shouldn't be a problem if we go and fetch the Dragon Radar, but ..."

Goku looked at him expectantly. "Yes?"

"This Ginyu guy took them to Freeza. That means getting them back will be rather ...", he struggled for the right word, "tricky."

Nodding thoughtfully, Goku turned around again. "Hey, Vegeta, you were with these guys for quite a while, right? Do you know a way we could go about it?"

The other Saiyan folded his arms and sneered. "I thought you wanted to go and defeat Freeza."

Goku didn't react to the mocking undertone and simply nodded again. "I'd like to see if I can do that, but first we have to bring back those you killed on Earth. It's the reason we came here after all. And besides, King Kai didn't want me to fight Freeza at all." He sighed.

"You'd really waste your wish on useless trash like them, huh?" Vegeta had the gall to roll his eyes. "Even if you manage to revive them what good will it do you once Freeza decides to go to Earth? He'll simply kill everyone again. Better wish for me to have eternal youth and immortality, so I can deal with him."

Krillin realized he was clenching his own fists and his resolve to play nice with Vegeta was slipping. How could he talk like this about their friends for whose deaths he not only bore responsibility but who also were each a much better person than him? Yes, even Piccolo. "You've got to be kidding me! As if giving you this power was any different from giving it to Freeza."

Vegeta smirked and opened his mouth to reply when the tingling of an approaching ki made him take note. They all perked up and looked in the direction the ki came from. So far nothing could be seen but their senses were clear about this.

"Two strong powers are coming our way," Gohan piped up.

"Looks like the result of your handiwork." Vegeta snorted. "This is what you get for letting Jeice get away. He went and alerted Ginyu who is, unfortunately, quite an opponent. Even for you, Kakarot."

There it was again. That feeling of cold dread in his stomach. Trust Goku to handle this, Krillin reminded himself, but the confidence he had felt as soon as the immediate threat in form of Jeice had left had taken a blow when he felt these two powers approaching. "This might be a challenge," he conceded. "Please be careful, Goku."

He expected another snide remark from Vegeta, but the Saiyan stared into the distance, his brow furrowed in thought. "Wait a second, where is Freeza? I thought he'd be on his ship. That's where Ginyu took the Dragon Balls, so why isn't Freeza there as well? At least, it feels as if he left."

Krillin sent out his mental feelers and nodded silently. Freeza's presence was gone from the place from which Ginyu was speeding towards them right now. It seemed that Vegeta was getting better at sensing ki or maybe he was better attuned to Freeza, so he'd notice his absence first.

Goku slowly turned around, then he pointed towards the horizon in another direction. "I can feel a strong ki in the distance. Maybe that's where he went."

Krillin stared at the light blue hills and the greenish sea beyond them that looked like pretty much any other place on this dreadful world. Then it hit him. "Oh no," he breathed. "That's where the Grand Elder resides."

Both Saiyans looked at him in confusion.

"I think Freeza tried having his wish fulfilled and when it didn't work he set out to find the last Namekian survivors so they can tell him how to do it," Krillin explained his train of thought.

Vegeta lifted an eyebrow. "So there are still survivors?"

Krillin was ready to glare at him, but to his surprise, Vegeta seemed more pensive than gleeful or eager to do something about the existence of a few remaining Namekians. That didn't mean that Krillin didn't prefer discussing this with Goku though.

His best friend was so much more attuned to his line of thought. "Is this Grand Elder the one who created Namek's Dragon Balls?" Goku guessed.

Krillin nodded. "He is. Which means this is really bad news."

Gohan caught on just as well. "Oh no, once he finds out how to use the Dragon Balls Freeza will surely murder the Grand Elder and the others. And when the Grand Elder dies the Dragon Balls will grow inert and all will be lost."

Vegeta's jaw dropped. "What?"

In case they all survived this and the Saiyan didn't try to kill them again Krillin decided he'd give him a lesson about Dragon Ball lore, so he wouldn't be lost all the time.

Right now though, they didn't have much time, because this was the moment Ginyu and Jeice landed on a hill nearby.

For a moment the two groups simply stared at each other, then each did a hasty briefing among themselves.

"Krillin," Goku said, "take Gohan and get the Dragon Radar from Bulma. Then go and find the Dragon Balls."

Gohan nodded eagerly. "Freeza probably didn't take them with him. They should still be around his ship, hopefully unguarded."

"Yes. I'll keep them busy and join you if I manage to defeat them."

The uneasy feeling in Krillin's stomach grew. "What do you mean 'if'? You should be more than a match for them by now," he said, trying to sound cheerful and encouraging.

Goku's smile was grim but determined. "Right." Then he turned towards their other ally. "Vegeta, you can take on the red one," he said, tilting his head into Jeice's direction. "You were so badly hurt that getting healed should have given you enough of a power boost to be able to handle him."

To Krillin's surprise that elicited a content grin from Vegeta. "So you knew about that?" For the first time, he sounded happy with his fellow Saiyan.

Goku nodded. "That we get a lot stronger when we almost die? Yes, I figured that out."

Just like when Vegeta had explained this biological quirk when he fought Zarbon, Krillin felt a twinge of envy. But this time there was also a sense of relief as this gave them at least some chance at survival.

Still, he couldn't say the thought of leaving Goku behind with Vegeta was a comforting one. As strong and tenacious as their ally was, Krillin couldn't shake the image of Nappa dying at Vegeta's hands once he was no longer of use.

"Get moving!" Goku whispered in his direction and Krillin knew his doubts and fears would have to take a backseat for now.

"Good luck!" he replied, then he and Gohan took off into the skies.

**Author's Note:**

> My first fic in this fandom, so I'm not quite sure about tagging conventions yet. If you need me to add or change anything please let me know.  
> All kinds of comments welcome.


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